


Little Brother

by Rivethart



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Anti-Monster Sentiment, Anxiety Attacks, Arson, Bigotry & Prejudice, Brotherly Love, Family, Fighting, Gen, Monsterphobia, Panic Attacks, Protective Siblings, Racism, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-31
Updated: 2016-01-26
Packaged: 2018-05-10 14:05:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5588944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rivethart/pseuds/Rivethart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Daniel has always followed his older brothers footsteps - his brother was a football star, a straight-A student, and now is completing an engineering degree at a nearby college. Henry is everything Daniel has ever aspired to be. That's why he joined the Human Health and Protection League - anything his brother does has to be for the best, even if it means fighting against the monsters that appeared from the nearby mountain two years ago. He even changed his name like his brother, going from Daniel to Dagger, like Henry went to Hunter. </p><p>An unexpected encounter with another younger brother might just change his mind, though, and show him that his big brother is not as great as he thinks...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Human Health and Protection League

Dagger (his real name was Daniel, but real names weren’t allowed in the HHPL) didn’t think anything was really wrong until his card was declined at the Gas ‘n’ Go near his house. He’d run it three times, double-checking the PIN, a blush of embarrassment crawling along his cheeks as he stuttered to the cashier (a bored college student who looked far too amused by the teens flustered explanation). He’d already put the gas in his car, so putting the purchase back wasn’t an option. The embarrassed boy dug through his wallet, pulling out his last twenty and a few ones. He was still two dollars and seventeen cents, but the cashier took pity and let it go.

            Still blushing like a school girl, Dagger left the Gas ‘n’ Go and got into his car – well, his parents car – and peeled out of the parking lot as fast as legally possible. The house he shared with his brother and parents was still fifteen minutes away – the gas station sat on the edge of the city proper, before the apartment buildings and stores pressed together like London row houses gave way to suburban neighborhoods and looping cul-de-sacs. His parents – both world renowned zoologists and ecologists who specialized in extinction study – made a very, _very_ decent income, which allowed them to live past the suburbs in a nice, neat 3-story house on several acres of land. Their backyard extended a mile into Ebott Forest, though it was still ten miles from the mountain proper.

            The mountain. Mount Ebott. Dagger wrapped his hands tight enough around the steering wheel to create a squeaking noise as vinyl rubbed against skin. Though he was hard pressed to admit it, the mountain _terrified_ him. Two years ago, a small earthquake had rocked the city of Wickston, sending him and his big brother stumbling out of the house in terror (watching _2012_ the night before may have had something to do with their hysterical screams). Only days later, several government agencies had set up camp at the base of Mt. Ebott, and international press exploded with the news that monsters had emerged from their underground prison. Several historians jumped into the fray, showing up on talk shows and news stations, extrapolating on the old legends about the war between monsters and humans.

            The king of monsters, a goat-like being named Asgore, was quickly deified by the press. His gentle voice, impeccable manners, habit of sipping tea, and insistence on being fair and open in all the dealings between humans and monsters quickly gained positive reactions and attention. The press ate it up, and showered him with positive attention. Thanks to the overwhelming support of the media, which in turn became overwhelming support of most of the populace, the monsters were quickly accepted into the human world.

            The government granted the monsters as much land around Mt. Ebott as possible, having turned it into a national forest nearly fifty years before. The monsters immediately began building their own city around the base of the towering mountain, near the huge cavern that had once housed the barrier. It hadn’t taken long for them to build up a nice city, which had all types of houses, architecture, and businesses. To the surprise of many humans, even the king only had a humble home, with a sprawling garden in the back.

            After a year or so, diffusion began. Monsters began to move out of their city (cleverly named Ebott City) set on exploring the world around them. Humans moved closer to Ebott City and it became common for humans and monsters to intermingle while walking around Wickston City. It was slightly less common, but humans could be seen wandering about Ebott City as well. The monsters were a bit more hesitant about letting humans near their homes, but slowly the two races were warming up to each other.

            That did not mean all humans were happy, however. Several hate groups popped up, and anti-monster sentiment was a well-heard whisper around the world. Luckily, their numbers were few enough and far enough away that they couldn’t do any real damage. The only true threat to the monsters was the Human Health and Protection League.

            Speak of the devil – that was Franky’s ride in the driveway. Dagger pulled the black Ford Focus alongside the ancient truck, wrinkling his nose at the rust spots along the rear wheel wells. There were a few other cars parked along the street. There were no other houses for nearly a mile, meaning there was only one place the drivers could be. Dagger grabbed his backpack and slid out of the car, wondering what everybody was doing here so early.

            The front door was unlocked, and the large front room and kitchen were both empty. Dagger dropped his bag on the nearest counter and threw open the fridge. There was beer – his brothers, wine – his parents, and left over Chinese from the day before. He slid open the vegetable crisper and grabbed some soda, glad to see it had survived the inevitable rummage he was sure had happened when Frank arrived.

            Several shouts from below revealed the location of the visitors. Clutching his soda, the high school junior swung open the door to the basement and snuck down the carpeted steps. His parents (who were currently in Africa, studying the mating habits and birth rates of lions for the next six months) had turned the basement into a game room, complete with a pool table, big-screen TV, and several comfortable couches and love seats arranged like a movie theater.

            The seats were currently occupied by no less than twenty men and women, some of whom were sitting on the floor, nursing beers or sodas. Franky – a man in his late forties with too much gray hair for his age and a beer belly that would put Homer Simpson to shame – was standing in front of them, preaching the evils of monster kind. Everyone was listening, hanging on every word.

            Hunter was standing at the bottom of the stairs, paying rapt attention to the old man. Unlike his little brother, who had dirty blonde hair and chocolate-brown eyes, the twenty-two-year-old had black hair and black eyes. He was also dressed all in black – not to be emo, Dagger knew, but because it made him look more intimidating.

            “Hey bro,” Dagger greeted as he reached the last few steps. Franky nodded in his direction but didn’t slow his sermon. “What’s going on? Why is everyone here today?”

            Hunter took a deep pull of his beer before glancing at his little brother, black eyes as hard as flint. “Tonight’s the night, kiddo,” he nudged the teens shoulder, “Tonight, we’re going to drive those monsters back underground once and for all!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apparently Undertale plot-bunnies have teeth, because this one would not let me go. This is mostly an exposition chapte. Let me know if y'all are interested in this - next chapter will have many of the monsters we all know and love!


	2. The Attack Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Car Accidents, Tetris, and Explosions

            Dagger didn’t _hate_ monsters. Actually, when they’d first emerged two years prior, he’d thought them to be fascinating and exciting. He had joined his parents in watching the news, and had quickly been roped into the Mettaton fan-wave that hit when the charismatic robot got his own show. Despite never meeting a monster, he’d thought them to be the coolest and most interesting thing to happen in his short lifetime.

            Then the car accident had happened. A year after their reemergence, the monsters were feeling more confident and began to come and wander the streets of downtown Wickston, happily curious about human life. Hunter had taken his brother to see a movie. It ended after ten o’clock, and by the time they laughed their way out of the theater after watching the terrible b-list comedy, the sun had long set, leaving a dark winter sky overhead. It had snowed some during the movie – just enough to dust the road, but the cold had iced over some of it. Hunter drove them home – Dagger had just gotten his learners permit, and his parents didn’t want him driving in the dark yet.

            Some new monsters had apparently come to visit, and very clearly did not understand the rules of the road yet. While they drove through downtown, a squat monster that looked like some sort of UFO with legs wandered into the crosswalk, distracted by his cellphone and completely ignoring the flashing ‘do no walk’ sign. Hunter had to slam on the breaks to avoid hitting the monster, and the car’s tires caught on a spot of black ice. They’d slid straight off the road and into a telephone poll. The front of the car had crumpled like an accordion as both Hunter and Dagger where thrown against their seat belts and pelted with glass as the windshield shattered.

            Dagger had gotten away with a scar on his nose and heavy bruising on his face, chest, and stomach from the seatbelt and airbag. Hunter had it worse – his airbag hadn’t gone off, so he’d impacted against the steering wheel, cracking his sternum and breaking several ribs. Along with whiplash was a broken nose, chipped teeth, heavy bruising and internal bleeding. He had several scars on his face – most eventually faded into barely-visible white lines, while others became pink and shiny and easily noticeable. He lost part of the vision in his left eye, which became cloudy from the damage. He had to wear a special contact lens to be able to see – luckily, they came colored, and he was able to find one matching his original iris color.

            While in the hospital, recovering from emergency surgery, Hunter was approached by Franky. The grizzled man had preached about the evils of monsters, twisting Hunter’s hazy memories to make the crash less of an accident and more of an intentional act of villainy by the UFO-shaped monster. The teens casual indifference in the monsters blossomed into full-on hatred.

            Their parents left for a year-long research trip not long after Hunter was given the all-clear by his doctor. Now that Hunter was twenty-two, they felt they could take the time away to continue their work. Both sons had insisted they pursue the job – thanks to things like Skype and Facebook, it wasn’t like they’d be out of touch. Their parents called every Sunday night while in Africa, and the boys refrained from throwing any wild house parties.

            Hunter was quick to offer their house as a meeting place for Franky and his ‘friends’, who turned out to be the HHPL. He’d even begun siphoning money from the account their parents had set up for them, without telling Dagger what he was doing. Soon, most nights involved Franky and some number of the HHPL visiting, sharing their rhetoric, and planning how to drive the monsters away – ether back to the Underground or farther into the wildness to the North.

            Still, the car accident and presence of the HHPL couldn’t make Dagger hate the monsters. Instead, he was merely _terrified_ of them.

            The sixteen-year-old refused to watch MTTV, talk with, or interact with any monsters in any way if he could avoid it. None of the monsters who had moved into the city had kids, meaning he didn’t have to worry about any monster classmates. Thanks to his parents’ wealth, he didn’t have an after-school job, so there was no threat of encountering them at work. It got to the point that Dagger didn’t go into town or hang out with his friends downtown anymore. Any time he saw a monster near him, he froze up or, most often, ran. When asked why he reacted that way, he made up some excuse about the car crash and subsequent recovery being the cause.

            He never talked about the nightmares or panic attacks or _bad_ thoughts.

            So, when Hunter asked him to join the HHPL, Dagger jumped on the chance to drive the monsters away. If there were no monsters, then he would stop having nightmares. No nightmares, no late-night wanders through the forest. No forest walks, no panic attacks, no _bad_ thoughts. Besides, his brother only ever thought of what was best for him – his big brother was awesome, and Dagger knew that he couldn’t go wrong by following his lead.

* * *

            “The answer is _fire_.”

            Franky’s eyes were wild as he paced in front of the fully gathered HHPL, most of whom were a bit buzzed and hanging onto his every word.

            “I did some reconnaissance,” Franky declared, and ignored Hunter’s snort that sounded suspiciously like _‘Google Maps_.’ “There’s a group of houses made of wood a few miles from the city! If we set the buildings on fire at the same time, the entire neighborhood will go up, and the monsters will see the true power of the humans!” He thumped a fist over his chest, which was swollen with pride for his race.

            Several of the people gathered cheered and someone yelled ‘Humans Only, Forever!’, the HHPL’s slogan. A weedy-looking man raised an arm once the shouts died down.

            “Franky,” he slurred, on his third beer of the evening, “How’re we gonna set them bastards on fire?”

            “With _these_.” The haggard man motioned to a box he had brought with him. He pulled it to the center of the front of the room and flipped the latches locking the lid in place.

            A line of glass bottles rattled as they were shown, and everyone assembled leaned forward in interest. Franky pulled out a bottle and held it up for them to see. The glass bottle was full of nearly-clear liquid, and the label slapped on the bottle read ‘Everclear Grain Alcohol – 95 Proof.’

            “We’re going to drink them to death?” Hunter asked, tone laced with sarcasm.

            “Nah, kid,” Franky leered, his eyes sparking with – not mischief, something much, _much_ more sinister. “We’re gonna show these monster bastards how to make a _Molotov Cocktail_.”

* * *

            Dagger wasn’t allowed to touch the liquor – Hunter absolutely forbade it. Being the good big brother he was, he convinced Franky to make him the groups lookout. Dagger would keep an eye on the roads leading to the neighborhood the HHPL was going to hit, and at the first sign of the weird Royal Guard (or more familiar police), he was to send out a mass text, which would signal them all to scatter into Ebott Woods until the next morning. It was a simple plan, and one that would go off without a hitch.

            So Dagger set out while the others were divvying up the bottles of high-proof liquor. It was only a seven-mile walk to the edge of the monster city, and with his mountain bike he managed to make it in half an hour. He leaned his bike against a tree out of sight of the nearest homes, then scouted around the edge of the forest a bit. The neighborhood they were hitting was mostly occupied by bunny-like monsters There was a road that wound up from the main, ‘downtown’ part of the city to the gathering of little oblong hutches. Hopefully, if the monsters were able to call for help, it would take the guard a bit to reach the houses and they’d be able to make a clean getaway.

            The road – which was paved, not many of the monsters had gotten their drivers licenses yet, but all the roads in the area were paved anyway for emergency vehicles and a future full of ‘monster trucks’ – brushed up against the woods on either side, with only slight patches of grass between asphalt and trees. Dagger found a fallen tree about a mile from the neighborhood and facing the town proper. Franky had explained that the road was three miles long, separating the bunny neighborhood from the city. The teen made sure he could see the edge of the first bunny houses, as well as a way down the road in order to spot the guard, if they came. A quick check of his phone showed it to be just past midnight, and a text simply saying ‘go’ primed for mass messaging at the first sign of trouble.   

            With a bored sigh, Dagger settled down behind the fallen log to wait. He pulled Tetris up on his phone and began to play, knowing it would take at least another hour for the rest of the HHPL to get sorted, loaded up into the few trucks they had, and take an abandoned logging road as close to their target as possible. Many of them men and women in the group smoked, drank excessively, or were simply too lazy to walk the seven miles.

            At nearly one o’clock, his phone beeped and his winning streak was interrupted by a message. He flicked it up with his thumb and saw a note from Hunter. ‘T-10 Launch.’

            Ten minutes ‘til the attack started. That was ten more minutes to beat his best score. Dagger sent a ‘Houston hears you’ back to his brother, then unpaused his game and began to play again.

            “HELLO HUMAN! WHAT IS THIS PUZZLE GAME YOU ARE PLAYING ON YOUR CELLULAR DEVICE?”

            Dagger barely managed to choke back a very girly scream at the voice booming in his ears. He froze like a statue, and the pieces on the screen quickly built and reached the top. The phone vibrated and beeped at him, ‘Game Over – New High Score’ flashing at him. There was a shadow hanging over him now, obscuring the dim orange light cast by the simple street lamps strung at wide intervals along the street.

            He could imagine it now – a great, hulking beast, covered in thick fur but beneath that nothing but human-destroying muscles. A grimace etched on a fierce, blocky face, nostrils flaring as it barred its fangs and growled at him, saliva dripping off yellowed teeth in thick, sticky globs that left wet trails down its lantern jaw. Twisted hands, gnarled like tree roots, would reach out to grab him, the blood of its last victim still staining the underside of the claws. He would be dead. Dead, dead, deader than a doornail (that expression had never made sense to him, but now was not the time to ponder the origin of old colloquialisms). Ever so slowly, Dagger tilted his head back, wanting to at least get a good look at his killer before the deed was done.

            To his surprise, the shadow was not hulking or thick – in fact, it was as thin as a twig in some places. Dagger turned in his spot, staring up at the – oh god, it was a _skeleton_!

            The monster straightened up as Dagger moved, and shifted so that the light of the nearest street lamp caught on his bones and illuminated him properly. He was dressed in black slacks and boots, and a white button-down shirt beneath a black jacket. There was a well-worn red scarf around his neck, which seemed to flutter despite there being no wind at the moment. He _did_ have a lantern jaw, which seemed to stretch as he grinned widely down at the human, boney brows pulled up over pupil-less eye sockets in what seemed to be delight.

            When Dagger didn’t say anything, his face dipped into a frown. “OH, I APOLOGIZE HUMAN, I DID NOT MEAN TO STARTLE YOU!” His gaze flicked to the cellphone in the human’s hand. “OH NO! IT APPEARS THAT BY DISTRACTING YOU WITH MY GREATNESS I HAVE CAUSED YOU TO LOSE YOUR PUZZLE! I AM VERY SORRY HUMAN!”

            The teen glanced back at his phone, taking in the flashing ‘Game Over’ text. The skeleton moved, and he jerked his head back upright as the willow figure easily stepped over the log and sat beside him, peering at the cellphone curiously. He didn’t seem to notice the way Dagger went ramrod straight, ever muscle in his body thrumming with tension. His eye sockets seemed entirely taken with the Tetris game.

            “WHAT IS THIS PUZZLE GAME?” He asked, pointing at the screen with a hand ensconced in a heavy red glove.

            “It’s – it’s called T-T-Tetris,” Dagger stuttered, trying to stop his hand from shaking as he held the phone out to the skeleton. Warning bells were going off in the back of his mind, but he couldn’t figure out why, aside from the sudden proximity of the large monster. The skeleton didn’t _seem_ like he was going to kill him or eat him, at least.

            “T-T-TETRIS?” The skeleton repeated, examining the phone but not reaching out to touch or take it. For a moment Dagger felt a flame of anger lick his mind – was the skeleton _teasing_ him for stuttering? A glance up at the boney face didn’t reveal any malice, just a burning curiosity.

            “Er, yeah,” Dagger tapped the screen with his thumb, triggering a new game to start. He made sure it was angled so the monster could see it. “See, these shapes drop down, and you have to try and make rows of them.” He tapped and slid his finger across the screen, moving the L-shape so it was short-side down and he pushed it into one of the corners. A square fell next, and he did the same, pushing it to the opposite corner. The skeleton watched, enraptured, as he continued to direct the pieces. When he created a line, the phone made a ‘blip’ sound and the blocks vanished.

            “WOWIE!” The skeleton’s eyes widened (somehow? How was he even able to move his facial features? It should have been impossible!), and his grin widened. He pulled his knees up to his chest and watched as Dagger created four lines, except for one long empty space. It didn’t take long to get a straight piece, and he let it drop, vanishing the four lines at once. “YOU ARE VERY TALENTED AT THIS PUZZLE HUMAN!”

            Dagger flinched at the loud voice, but couldn’t help the little grin that tugged up the corner of his lips. This odd skeleton monsters seemed to exude excitement and enthusiasm from every pore. Was that right? Pore? Did the skeleton even _have_ pores? Well, that’s how the saying went…

            The teen was jerked out of his mental examination of English sayings by the skeletons loud voice. “MAY I TRY THE PUZZLE, HUMAN?”

            “Uh, sure.” Dagger handed the smartphone to the skeleton, and nearly snapped his hand back when his fingers brushed against the skeletons glove. The skeleton ‘hmm-ed’ happily and skimmed his glove across the screen, hoping to move the falling block to one side.

            It did nothing.

            The monster frowned and tried to swipe the piece to the side again, but it didn’t do anything. He huffed in annoyance. Dagger bit his bottom lip, hoping that the monster wouldn’t get upset and take it out on them.

            “AH!” The monster balanced the phone in one hand and, using his teeth, tugged the glove off the other. “YOUR PHONE IS NOT FIXED TO REGISTER MAGIC!” He explained, catching sight of Daggers confused face. “THIS SHOULD FIX IT.” He held up his uncovered hand – five fingers, compromised of phalanges and metacarpals, like a humans only thicker and without the squishy organic stuff. A slight orange glow covered his fingers creating what looked like squishy pads. Dagger saw a light glow in his right eye – it was orange, and flickered steadily. With a triumphant ‘NYEH-HAH!’ he pressed his finger to the screen. To the human’s surprise, the phone reacted and the skeleton was able to start a new game and begin dragging and tapping at the pieces.

            The monster was a quick leaner – he made short work of the easier levels, only slowing when the bricks began to drop faster and faster. His brows wrinkled as the bricks began to build up, misplacing a few of them and making soft noises of annoyance when something landed in the wrong place.

            Dagger knew he should have left – he should have run as soon as the monster appeared, but it had happened so fast that his brain was still processing the fact that a living, breathing (maybe?) skeleton was sitting beside him, playing on his phone. His legs felt like lead beneath him, and his hands twitched against the fabric of his jeans. He wasn’t sure he could run even if he wanted to now.

            He glanced down the street at the bunny village. The other HHPL members should have started by now, quietly setting up the bottles with long wicks at the backs of the houses, preparing to set them on fire and cause mass chaos. He wondered if they were making sure the monsters would get out of the houses safely, not blocking the doors or anything. He sort of doubted it – the other members didn’t seem to _want_ to kill anybody, but he doubted that would stop Franky if the chance arose.

            “CURSES! THIS PUZZLE HAS DEFEATED ME!” The monsters sounded strangely disappointed as he held the phone out to Dagger. The teen took it carefully, making sure not to brush against the boney hand. The skeleton had set a new high score, way past what Dagger had ever made.

            “You did really well,” he said out loud without meaning too.

            The skeleton paused in the middle of pulling his glove back on, turning to look at the human with wide eyes. Were those _sparkles_ around his face? And why was he turning orange?

            “TRULY, HUMAN?” Well, at least he sounded happy. Ecstatic, actually. “THANK YOU! I SHALL HAVE TO FIND THIS T-T-TETRIS GAME AND PUT IT ON MY OWN PHONE!” He finished re-gloving his hand, then threw his arm around Dagger’s shoulder. “I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM GLAD I MET YOU TONIGHT! THIS IS TRULY THE BEGINNING OF A WONDERFUL PUZZLE-BASED FRIENDSHIP!”

            Friendship? Whoa, whoa, whoa that was _not_ what he was expecting, or what he wanted. He didn’t want to be _friends_ with a monster! They were – they were _evil_ , they were _cruel_ , they were _not to be trusted!_ He’d seen the videos – monsters showing their magic, picking up heavy items and throwing them around, creating things out of pure magic – small things, mostly - platforms or ladders, but that one fish-frog-lady had made spears, there was no telling what other kind of weapons could be made. These monsters were _monsters_. They were dangerous, not friendly, not nice.

            A sudden weight around his neck made him jerk away from the skeleton in alarm. The monster had unwound the red scarf from around his neck and draped it around Daggers own. “YOU ARE TREMBLING NEW FRIEND! IT IS COLD OUT FOR HUMANS.” He folded the fabric so it wouldn’t fall from the human’s shoulders. “THERE! NOW YOU ARE MUCH BETTER PREPARED FOR THE WEATHER!” He grinned, tilting his head up and striking an odd pose – one hand on his chest, the other on his hip, it was most likely very impressive when standing but at the moment, sitting, it just made him look like an awkward, boney chicken. “YOU LOOK LIKE A HERO NOW, LIKE THE GREAT PAPYRUS!” He made that odd ‘nyeh-heh-heh’ laugh again.

            “Uh,” Dagger reached up and brushed a hand over the fabric. Had – had the monsters just given him his _scarf_? But – he wasn’t cold. He was _scared_. Why did the monster do something so nice? He hadn’t even asked or offered, he just _did it_.

            The human was saved from an awkward ‘thank you’ and attempting to return the gift by an explosion that rocked the ground beneath him. He yelped, and the skeleton – who was apparently ‘the Great Papyrus’ – shot to his feet, looking towards the bunny village in growing horror. Dagger used the fallen tree trunk to push himself up and followed Papyrus’s gaze.

            Down the road, just around the bend, flames were crackling and licking at the trees. Monsters were screaming, and shadows were scrambling along the pavement as they fled their homes. There was a second explosion – this one closer to where the two stood – and the house on the end, the one Dagger had barely been able to see, was lost in a blanket of smoke as flames licked at its base. The front door banged open and out rushed a pair of grown bunnies, with children clutched in their arms and following them, all holding hands.

            _Kids_? Dagger moved forward, a sick, empty pit growing in his stomach. _There were KIDS in the homes? Well of course there were, it’s a neighborhood for families, of course they have kids. I have to go check – there weren’t supposed to be explosions, just fires, nobody was supposed to be hurt!_

            A boney hand – softened by the heavy gloves – grasped his shoulder and tugged him back. The skeleton’s smile had dropped, and he had pulled a phone from his pocket. “No,” he said sternly, his voice softer and sterner than before. “Stay here.”

            “But – but they could be _hurt_!” Dagger protested, a shudder running through him.

            The skeleton, who’s face had grown tense and harsh as he realized what was going on, softened his gaze. “Do not worry,” he pushed aside part of his jacket, revealing the gold patch embroidered over his chest with the letters ‘ECRG’ emblazoned on it in sparkly thread, “I am part of the Ebott City Royal Guard.” He hit a button on his phone and held it up to the side of his skull, to where his ear would be.

            Whatever he said was lost to Dagger. The teen was minutes away from having a panic attack – this was a GUARD? One of the ones he was supposed to be looking out for? Oh god, Franky and Hunter would kill him. He had to send out the warning – get the others out. He turned away from the skeleton, shoulders tense, and closed the Tetris game still up on his phone. He went to the messaging app and sent out the ‘go’ text to the other members of the HPPL.

            “HUMAN.” The hand was back on his shoulder, and Dagger jumped, nearly dropping his phone. Papyrus was scowling, not at him, just in general. “REMAIN HERE.” He motioned to the log. “I WILL RETURN WHEN THIS,” he motioned to the village and the ever-growing fires down the road, “IS TAKEN CARE OF.”

            Dagger gave a jerky nod. Satisfied, the skeleton gave his shoulder another squeeze, then turned and took off for the village. Once he was almost to the first house, the human turned and sprinted for where he’d left his bike. There was a growing wail from the direction of the city, and just as he lost sight of the road, he heard emergency vehicles – some of the few the monsters had and drove – rushed past towards the village. Heart in his throat, he mounted his bike and took off for home, trying to ignore the sound of the third explosion and the screams of the monsters behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was incredibly fun to write! I love the idea of Papyrus losing his mind over Tetris - a puzzle where every game is random and different and it gets harder the better you get at it? C'mon, we all know he would love it! 
> 
> Hopefully the next chapter will be up in a few days - I'm excited to get deeper into the plot of this. I may be able to get some drawings of Dagger & Hunter done - my tumblr is http://ebottpreservationsociety.tumblr.com/ 
> 
> Please leave me a comment or a kudos if you enjoyed this chapter! I really, REALLY appreciate all the feedback I can get!


	3. Unintended Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Panic attacks and crime scenes

            Dagger was the first back to the house – Hunter would be home soon, he knew. The others were to scatter for at least a week before meeting up again. He shoved his bike into the garage, wincing when it hit one of the cars but not caring enough to fix it. The door to the garage led right to the kitchen and he stumbled inside, making it far enough for the door to shut before collapsing to his knees.

            He’d had panic attacks since he was little – a nice therapist with a bucket full of super-fluffy stuffed animals in her office said it was due to Generalized Anxiety Disorder. She’d taught him breathing techniques and ways of getting his body under control when he had one of the attacks, and had trained his parents and brother on how to do it as well. As he grew up, the attacks stopped coming as often. It’d been years since he had one.

            Tonight’s disastrous events broke that streak, and Dagger drew in raspy breaths one after another, trying to get his lungs – which felt like lead-lined balloons at the moment – to inflate and accept the air. His fingernails scrabbled at the tiled linoleum beneath his hands as he fought with his body, thoughts spinning wildly.

            That skeleton monster – Papyrus. Why hadn’t he been cruel or mean or awful or killed him or done ANY of the things Dagger had expected?

            The explosions – what had exploded? Molotov Cocktails didn’t explode like that! The bottles could shatter if they weren’t thrown, but they didn’t EXPLODE like a friggin’ IED when they weren’t!

            The monsters – the bunny monsters. Those children had looked so frightened, so wide-eyed and sleepy at the same time, obviously awoken by the smell of smoke and burning wood and the crackling of their homes being devours by the hungry flames. They weren’t supposed to be attacking children – Franky had said _nobody_ would be hurt! Those children weren’t nobodies! One of them had just been a baby, wrapped up in a blanket in their mums’ arms, bawling his eyes out.

            Dagger’s trembling worsened and his arms gave in. Without the shaky support he fell to the floor, stomach lurching as it hit the tiles. He rolled to his side and wrapped his arms around himself, pressing his chin against his chest and he tried to make himself as tiny as possible. Something brushed against his nose, and he tried to gasp in alarm but couldn’t – his lungs were still sitting like cement bricks in his chest.

            The scarf.

            The scarf the scarf the scarf the monsters scarf the red flowy waving scarf the scarf from the skeleton the scarf that was too long because it hung like a cape over his shoulders the scarf that was a bit torn but lovingly mended in many places with a basic blanket stitch the scarf that smelled like bone and trees and tomato sauce and was pressed against his face because it was still around his neck the scarf the skeleton had given him the scarf Papyrus had given him the scarf the scarf the scarf it was red it was red like blood and red like fire and oh god did he have blood on his hands now oh god how would he explain this to his parents oh god why hadn’t he just kept avoiding the monsters oh god why had he followed his brothers lead oh god red like blood red like fire red like the eyes of the rabbits as they ran from their burning, bloody homes red like a heart red like his own blood that was falling down his wrist as his nails twisted into his arms oh god red like the blood still inside him red like how easy it would be to grab a knife and end it red like no more thoughts no more late night walks no more nightmares no more bad thoughts because this was the bad thought red like death red like dead red like die red like end it all red like the world at the edge of his vision red like the encroaching black that was creeping on him because he couldn’t breath and his lungs were made of concrete and were filling up with blood that was red red red red like his brothers jacket red like his brothers cheeks red like his brothers flush as he crouched in front of him on the kitchen floor red like the skeletons gloves as they touched his fingers red like the skeletons gloves as they grabbed his shoulder red like the skeleton as he showed his badge red like the lights on the emergency vehicles red red red black like his vision as he finally gave up.

 

* * *

 

            _“Unprovoked attack…”_

_“No monsters were killed, but several were taken to the nearest hospital in Ebott City.”_

_“The Royal Guard is investigating, and the Wickston Police Department have offered their assistance, and the full force of their forensic unit.”_

_“There are no more details at the time…”_

_“Fifty-seven Bunfolk were displaced by the fires. Queen Toriel and King Asgore are asking that any monsters with extra food, clothes, or room please come to the Castle if you want to offer aid…”_

_“We will be back when we have more information for you. Thank you, MTTV viewers. Stay determined.”_

_“Thank you Mettaton. That was Mettaton, on the scene at Alfalfa Road where earlier tonight, an entire neighborhood caught fire after several explosions of unknown origin. We will keep you appraised of any updates. Coming up next – Mettaton and the Beast!”_

There was a click as the television was turned off, and a hand ran through his hair, accompanied by a soft humming. He pressed his head against the hand, craving the rarely-received contact from who could only be his brother.

            The hand paused, but he whined, and it began stroking his head again. “Time to wake up, Daniel.”

            Daniel, not Dagger. That meant there were no HHPL people around. The teen opened his eyes (which were sore and felt gritty) and looked up at his brother. They were on the couch in the living room, Henry (not Hunter, not when he was Daniel) comfortably sunk into one end, while Daniel was stretched out across all three cushions, head resting in his brothers’ lap. Henry seemed to relax further when his little brother swum up from the depths of unconsciousness.

            “How are you feeling?”

            Daniel immediately opened his mouth to say fine, but a stern look from his brother made him pause and think it over. “Uh – my head hurts a bit, but other than that I feel fine.” He moved to sit up, but Henry strengthened his grip on the teens shoulder, preventing him from getting up. Daniel gave him an odd look, but the older brother didn’t say anything, just tightened his grasp. “Uh, bro?”

            “You scared the _hell_ outta me!” Henry finally snapped, and Daniel was yanked into a rough hug, face pressed into his brother’s shoulder, which was trembling ever so slightly. “I thought you were _dead_! God, don’t _do_ that!”

            “Heh, sorry bro,” Daniel muttered, wrapping his own arm around Henry and hugging him just as tightly. They just sat there like that for several minutes, and the younger brother reveled in the quiet. The HHPL had been around almost _constantly_ the past few weeks – but now, there would be at least a week of silence, of just them together. No Franky, no drunks, no middle-aged women with badly-dyed hair pinching his cheeks and telling him how cute he is. It would be bliss.

            At last Henry released him and helped him sit up, making sure he wasn’t dizzy or uncomfortable. He’d tucked a blanket around Daniel while he slept, and the blonde wrapped it snuggly around his shoulders as he leaned back into the plush couch, wondering absently if it would be possible to sink out of sight and just live in a couch cocoon for the rest of his life.

            “What set you off?”

            “Huh?”

            Henry was glaring at the ground. “You haven’t had a panic attack in _years_ , and you haven’t had one bad enough to knock you out since you were _nine_.” He looked at his brother with a tight expression, worry in every line of his face. “What set you off? Was it the monsters?” He rubbed at his eyes, stress thrumming through his frame. “God, I knew you shouldn’t have come – I should have had you stay home. It was stupid to bring you along.”

            “No, no, it wasn’t the monsters!” Daniel reached out and grabbed his brothers arm, giving it a light squeeze. “It – it was,” he paused, thinking back to when he had collapsed on the kitchen floor. He had been thinking about…”the explosions.”

            “Oh, yeah,” Henry leaned back with a sour laugh, “To be honest, those scared the hell out of me too.”

            “What blew up?” Daniel asked curiously, thinking back to the shaking of the ground and the roaring sound of flames being unleashed on the innocent oxygen in the atmosphere. “Molotov cocktails don’t do that, right?”

            “No, no,” Henry ran a hand through his hair and scratched at the back of his head – a nervous habit of his. “Someone taught the monsters about barbequing.” He finally said with a disbelieving laugh. “One of the houses had a propane tank outback, and someone hit it just right.”

            “Propane tanks?” Daniel gaped. “How did they make such a _huge_ explosion?” He demanded. “And – and there were three, weren’t there?”

            “Yeah. A few of them had gas grills. That first explosion just kind of set everything off.”

            “God that’s – that’s horrible.”

            Henry gave a half-nod. “Yeah. Took out the element of surprise, that’s for sure.” Daniel wanted to correct him, but kept his mouth shut. His brother _hated_ monsters; confessing that he was worried about the Bunfolk and the odd Papyrus wouldn’t do him any favors.

            The two brothers settled back on the couch, both spent from the busy night. Daniel absently heard the TV click back on, as well as his brothers nervous mumbling. He tucked his chin and nose down into the blankets wrapped around him, taking in the smell of bone and tomato sauce from Papyrus’s scarf, and thinking that he would have to find a way to return it…

 

* * *

Nobody had died.

            Papyrus kept repeating that to himself as he paced along Alfalfa Road. On either side of the paved street were houses. Well, they had been houses. Now there were smoldering ruins and sooty squares where the homes of the bunny monsters – the Bunfolk – had been burnt to the ground. The air was thick with the smell of smoke and burnt wood, of melted plastic and red-hot metal. Eighteen homes – every single one in the little neighborhood the Bunfolk had carved out for themselves – was gone. All their belongings – clothes, food, money, treasures, heirlooms, everything – all of it gone to ash.

            But nobody had died.

            The skeleton walked stiffly past one of the emergency vehicles, which had quieted its sirens but was still blaring its red and blue lights. It was a medical emergency vehicle – the kind the humans called an ambulance. A female monster with a little baby bun in her arms was being checked over by Alphys. The lizard monster wasn’t exactly a doctor, but she knew more about monster souls and magic than most in the monster community did and that made her an important member of the emergency response team. The other, actual MD-certified doctors were gathered around another ambulance, helping an older monster who had been badly burned. Several other Buns had already been whisked ahead to the Ebott City Hospital.

            The little bun was cooing at the lizard, who had an anxious grin on her face. While Alphys had been getting better with her social anxiety issues, high stress situations brought out her stutter and shaking. For now, she seemed to have it under control. Papyrus patted her shoulder as he walked past, and she gave him an appreciative nod before continuing to examine the two buns for smoke inhalation.

            He passed a few more vehicles – one of which was a bit more dented than he remembered, and he rightly assumed that had been the one Undyne had been driving – and joined the group of guards around said monster.

            The fish monster was, for lack of a better, punchier word, _furious_. Her hair had half-fallen from its ponytail and hung around her face as she paced in front of the group. Her jacket had been discarded on the ground, and the sleeves of her white button-up shirt – the standard uniform for the guard who could wear it – were pushed up past her elbows, revealing her arm fins. Both sets of fins – arm and head – were splayed out and twitching as she moved, a blue spear that crackled and arced with energy held tightly in one hand. She reached the end of her path, spun (nearly taking out Doggo with the spear) and paced back.

            “Papyrus!” She barked, “Report!”

            “Nobody is dead.” He immediately snapped out, and the air of tension among the dog guards lessened ever so slightly. Even Undyne’s fins relaxed an iota. “Everything has been burnt to ash,” he motioned to the spots of soot and burnt out husks of houses along each side of the road, “but only one a few of the Bunfolk sustained serious injury. The doctors have assured me they’ll be fine, however.”

            “Good.” Undyne stopped and banged the end of her spear on the ground, good eye crackling with the same bright-blue magic. “Now, have we figured out just what the hell caused this?”

            “Swear jar.”

            Ah, Sans had arrived, in his usual pop-in-and-out manner. He was standing beside Undyne, none having seen him walk up. They’d all gotten used to it over the past few years, though, so nobody batted an eye.

            The short skeleton was in the same uniform as them all – button up shirt, black slacks and boots, black jacket. His jacket was a hoodie, however – specially whipped up for him by his girlfriend, Queen Toriel. He stood with his hands shoved in the front pocket, lazy white pupils looking over everyone as they turned attentively to him. He wasn’t an official member of the Royal Guard like Papyrus; he was more like a consultant. After they’d finally broken the barrier he’d accepted a position working with Alphys in the royal lab, pursuing his studies in quantum physics, time travel, and so on for the first time in years. Papyrus had never seen him happier than when he fell asleep over a book at his desk, exhausted from cramming new knowledge into his cranium all day.

            Sans had also become interested in a different kind of science: forensics. He watched television shows such as ‘Forensic Files’ and ‘Snapped’ and ‘The First 48’ to learn everything he could about the way humans used clues at crime scenes to track down the perpetrators. It fascinated him that something as simple as a rug fiber could be used to pin the crime on the right suspect. He had an entire bookshelf full of forensic books at his lab, and several stacks of the books at home. He was hoping that, once things settled down between the humans and monsters in the next few years, he’d be able to take classes to become a certified forensic scientist. In the meantime, he ‘consulted’ with the Royal Guard when they asked, or when anything big happened.

            This was the first ‘big’ thing to happen, however. Everything else had taken place on the human side of the land – monster homes in Wickston being vandalized, New Grillby’s and Muffet’s Tea and Sweets shop being broken into and trashed – just general anti-monster crimes where nobody got hurt, taken care of by the human law enforcement. This was a whole other ballgame.

            Papyrus was glad his brother was there – they would need his sharp eyes to find who had done this, or whether it had simply been an accident. With his brother’s bloodhound-like skills, they would quickly wrap up this mystery like those kids and dog in the blue-and-green van on Cartoon Network often did.

            “SANS!” He greeted warmly, interrupting Undyne before the two could start squabbling. “I AM PLEASED YOU MADE IT BROTHER. HAVE YOU FOUND ANYTHING?”

            “Yeah.”

            Uh-oh. No pun. Not even a grin – his perma-smile had slipped into a rarely-seen grimace. The short skeleton reached into the black messenger bag he had thrown over one shoulder and pulled out a plastic bag with the word ‘EVIDENCE’ printed in black letters along the tape-sealed top. Inside the large bag was a glass bottle with the top half blown off, leaving a good chunk of the label behind.

            “Someone purposely set these bottles of high-proof alcohol around and lit them on fire.” He shook the bag a bit, his grimace twisting into a true frown. “There were a dozen or so footprints that I could see, but I lost them when they doubled back into the forest.” He tucked the bag back into his satchel, only to have it snatched out of his hand at the last second. He jerked in surprise, looking up at the culprit, only to immediately relax. “Hey, Ted.”

            Ted – a tall human with a blonde buzz cut, wearing a neat beige Sheriff’s office uniform, nodded to the skeleton as he examined the bottle, rubbing at his thick chin in thought. Undyne tensed ever so slightly, but the dog guard began to bounce on their toes, while Papyrus simply sighed and resigned himself to a few hours of terrible puns.

            “Molotov Cocktail.”

            Well, that wasn’t a pun.

            “Come again?” Sans asked, raising a brow at the two words.

            “It’s a kind of incendiary device.” The deputy handed the bag back to Sans and shoved his hands in his pockets, rocking back on his heels. “You stick some kind of long wick – like rope or a twisted up towel, something that will burn – into the bottle, light the end on fire and throw it. It’s a damn-near infallible way to set a fire.”

            “So what,” Sans stuck his hands in his hoodie pocket, mirroring Ted’s stance, “we were attacked by a bunch of alcoholics who were just trying to make candles?”

            Ted didn’t take the bait. “Nah,” even serious, his southern drawl came through, “Y’all were attacked by one of those hate groups – I’ll bet you anything it was the HHPL. Franky’s been awfully quiet the past few weeks.”

            Sans scowled, accompanied by the rest of the guard. Undyne slammed the point of her spear into the ground and left it there, pulling her now free hand into a fist and smacking it against her palm. “Show me to this Franky! I’ll teach him what happens when you mess with monsters!”

            “I’m thinkin’ that would be the opposite of a good idea,” Ted drawled, a brow popping up in sardonic amusement. “Naw, we’ve got the FBI flying in over this.”

            “The FBI?” Dogaressa – who was always able to stay calm, especially in tricky situations – questioned.

            “Federal Bureau of Investigation.” He fished a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, offered them to the others, then popped one out and chewed on the end when they all refused. “Government bigwigs – best at what they do. This,” he motioned to the burnt street, “was an attack by American Terrorists on another nation, technically.”

            Undyne was scowling now, her fins crackling with magical energy. She summoned some spears and sent them flying off into the woods with a furious shout, trying to dissipate some of it before it took over. “Ugh. DAMMIT!” She roared, the word echoing down the street (and earning a disapproving look from Mettaton, who was at the entrance to the neighborhood preparing to give his viewers and update on the situation). “Asgore _hates_ this political crap. It’s gonna drive him nuts.”

            Papyrus – who had been oddly quiet, but attentive non-the-less – reached out and rested a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Everything will turn out alright,” he said encouragingly, looking around at all his co-workers. “Nobody was dusted, and the city is safe. We will simply have to find a way to make the other villages and neighborhoods equally safe.”

            There was a moment of silence, then Doggo snorted. “Pap’s right,” he waved at the tall skeleton, pulling a dog treat from his pocket and sticking it firmly between his teeth before searching for a lighter. Ted obliged, pulling his own from his belt and setting the Milky Bone on fire before touching the flame to his own cigarette. “Chasin’ our tails ain’t gonna do us any good,” he glanced over at the woods beyond the burnt husks of houses. “Best we can do now is make sure everybody else ‘s safe.”

            “Right. Yeah, you’re _right_!” Undyne’s pep was back in her step as she rounded on them, using her spear to gesticulate. “Alright, weenies, back in the cars! We’re heading to the city to secure it, then spreading out and checking on every monster we can!”

            The dogs and Papyrus saluted and headed off to the cars they’d ridden over in, followed closely by Ted who went to his own cruiser, only to be ambushed on the way there by Lesser Dog, who wanted pets. (He insisted human pets were better than fellow monster pets, but none of the others could tell the difference.) Papyrus moved to get in his own car – a cherry red convertible his brother had given him when they first came to the surface – but was stopped by a hand wrapping around his wrist.

            “Hey bro,” Sans had moved to stand behind him, eyes squinting up through the early dawn darkness.

            “Yes, Sans, what is it?” Papyrus watched Undyne peel out of the neighborhood, followed closely by the second cruiser (which was being driven by a scowling Doggo, the only other guard who had his driver’s license).

            “Where’s your scarf?”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am not 100% happy with this chapter. I tried to show some of the relationship between the bros, as well as the monsters side of things. 
> 
> Thoughts, please? I'd appreciate any feedback - especially the constructive kind!
> 
> Cheers!


	4. A Helping Hand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Deep thoughts in the deep end.

Daniel had learned that if he wanted peace and quiet, the most reliable place to go was the pool. It was a good-sized kidney-bean shaped hole in the backyard, neatly tiled and normally full of clear, blue-green water that used some kind of environmentally-friendly plant-based filtering system. He couldn't hide out when there was water in it - both his mother and brother were practically part-fish, the way they hit the pool at least once every day during the summer and spent hours swimming laps or splashing around. During the fall and winter, however, when it was too cold to swim, the pool was drained and a blue tarp was stretched tightly over the top to keep leaves and kittens from falling in.

This was when Daniel used it as his refuge. He’d learned early on that neither his parents nor his brother would think to look for him in the covered pool. As long as he used the hooks on the edge of the tarp to put it back into place after slipping down the ladder, nobody was the wiser. He’d even created a nest out of a few extra blankets and pillows down in the deep end.

Now, with Henry having gone to bed, intending to sleep until at least six that evening (it was seven in the morning now – the attack had happened around one, and they’d both been a bit too jittery to get any real sleep while watching the news), Daniel descended into his pit of solitude, feeling relief as the familiar blue-green light surrounded him. The tarp was made of some kind of weave – kind of like blue burlap, his parents hadn’t wanted a plastic one – and let in enough sunlight to create a comfortable atmosphere. It was still a bit dark at the moment – the sun was just beginning to rise after all.

The teen crawled into his nest and pulled his phone out, flipping through Facebook. It had been exploding for the past six hours – everyone had an opinion about the attack, Go Fund Me pages had been set up for the displaced Bunfolk in order to raise money to help them rebuild their homes, and Mettaton’s face was _everywhere_ as people shared the videos of the disaster.

Daniel stopped scrolling when he came across a series of pictures posted by MTTV one of his friends had shared. They showed the Bunfolk, some standing mournfully in front of the debris, others holding onto their families and friends, sobbing as everything they had ever known was destroyed in front of them. There were pictures of the sleepy-eyed bun children, having just been awakened by their parents only to see their homes fall apart as the fire consumed them. There was an older bun, his fur silver with age, watching as one of the buildings collapsed with tears clinging to his dark eyes.

He continued to flip through the images, expression pulling into a blank mask as the heart-wrenching expressions of the buns hit him. A picture of a mother cradling her child, both blackened with soot as the wind picked up the smoke and blew it down the street, choking them. An image of a badly-burnt child bun being lifted on a stretcher by a pair of doctors, one already setting up an infusion of magic to keep them from turning to dust. A photo of the Royal Guard arriving, lights blaring, Papyrus already there and assisting an old bun with what appeared to be a broken leg towards an ambulance.

Daniel reached up and grabbed at the red scarf around his neck, stomach twisting as he continued to scroll through the pictures, each one chipping at his heart more and more. God, what had they _done_?

NO!

No.

What had _he_ done?

Daniel dropped his phone and buried his head in his hands. God, what had he been thinking? Sure, he was afraid of the monsters, but how – _HOW_ – could he have ever thought this was a good idea? They were people, just like him and his brother, just trying to make a life for themselves on the surface. Why had he even entertained the idea of participating in this? Why had he thought it was okay to try and scare these monsters, these _people_ , just because they scared him? God, what was wrong with him?

The teen jerked his head upright, heart clenching. _He_ was the monster here, not them. Not the Bunfolk or the royal guard. _He_ was the monster, and _he_ had to make it up to them. Daniel stuffed his phone in his pocket and scrambled up the ladder, out of his hidey hole. He ran inside and quickly changed into clean clothes that didn’t smell of smoke and booze. A quick peek in the bedroom across from his own showed Henry snoring on his bed, out for the count. He wouldn’t be up until late evening, at best. Daniel still scribbled a note for him and left it in the kitchen, saying he had gone for a bike ride and would be back later. He entertained the idea of eating, but his stomach did a violent jerk at the thought of food, so he left without breakfast.

His bike was where he had left it the night before, leaning up against his dad’s old car in the garage, a slight scratch where the handle-brake had hit the paint. He ignored it – his dad wasn’t a big car person and probably wouldn’t notice (unless it was his Prius). He slipped through the back door and mounted his bike, taking off across the backyard, around the pool, and into the woods, following the same route as the night before.

 

* * *

 

Papyrus was back at the crime scene, shuffling around half-heartedly as Sans inspected the trees that surrounded the neighborhood. The taller skeleton had barely remembered to check on his new human-friend, the one with the T-T-Tetris puzzle by the log, and had been disappointed to see they had vanished (along with his favorite scarf). It had made him a bit sad, but he couldn’t fault the human – they’d looked like a child, maybe a few years older than Frisk, and the explosions _had_ been scary.

What had the human been doing out here anyway? He knew some of the humans owned land in the forest, but he’d been in monster territory. The guard had entertained the idea of the human being part of the HHPL for all of ten seconds before shoving the idea away. He’d been much too friendly and open to be one of those monster-hating, hate-mongering mongrels. Sans had seemed interested in the encounter, but when Papyrus mentioned it was a child he’d seemed to shrug it off, muttering something about hate groups not recruiting minors.

What was Sans doing now, anyway? He’d been taking photos for the past few hours, documenting everything in a little notebook that was floating behind him in a blue haze. He had little plastic markers that sat up by themselves and was using them, along with a ruler, in each photo. As Papyrus watched, the smaller monster picked up one of the markers, wiped off the number and letter on it, and used a dry erase marker to write another letter and number.

Each house had been given a letter, Sans had explained. There were eighteen houses, each one assigned a letter between A and R, with the debris on the road using the label S. Then, each picture was giving a number, and the white markers were used to keep track of which picture was where, as was the notebook that was bobbing behind him that he periodically stopped to write in. He’d been at it for hours, taking pictures of absolutely everything, especially the footprints and bottle remains. A stack of plastic evidence bags was sitting in a Tupperware bin beside Papyrus’s car (which Sans had thoughtfully brought by the night before), each one carrying a bit of evidence he had found.

While he respected the dedication and physical movement Sans was showing in his investigation (honestly, he didn’t think he’d ever seen his brother move this much since Grillby had half-off hamburgers in celebration of the barrier breaking!), Papyrus had been hoping for a bit more…excitement. In the television documentaries, everything was solved within half-an-hour or an hour. Even the fake shows, like CSI and Criminal Minds and NCIS and all the others, were able to fix everything in no time. This slow, methodical gathering of evidence wasn’t _nearly_ as exciting as the music-backed montages on TV made it seem.

Papyrus made another round along the street, walking along the sidewalks, careful not to step on the neatly-documented debris. Sans seemed to want to collect everything, but both Undyne and Ted had pointed out that it would end up with too much evidence for them to ever sort through or make sense of, and the evidence locker in the Royal Guard building wasn’t _nearly_ big enough. Still, Papyrus made sure not to step on anything that might prove to be a case-breaking clue later.

“Hey Pap!” Sans was standing at the edge of the forest behind house D, camera clutched in one boney hand. He motioned his brother over, a concerned look in his eye sockets.

“What is it, brother?” Papyrus hurried over. Was this it – the one clue that would break the entire case open and show that the HHPL had been behind the whole thing? Instead of proudly showcasing a fiber or dropped wallet or magical fingerprint, Sans simply pointed down the street, towards where Alfalfa Road curved towards the city.

“We got company,” the short skeleton squinted at the figure pedaling around the corner. The road had been closed off where it left the city – nobody lived between the city and the Bunfolk neighborhood, and it had been easier to simply shut it down there, preventing both monsters and nosey humans from invading the crime scene. Sans had asked that people be kept from the crime scene for as long as possible, in order to preserve any clues, and Asgore had agreed. He pulled his peoples focus onto helping the displaced Buns instead of putting attention on the horrid acts.

Mettaton had casually mentioned a human phenomenon called a ‘gas leak’ and explained that sometimes, improperly stored gas (like propane used in grills) could cause unintended explosions. This had calmed a lot of the monsters – surely it was an accident, then? Not an attack by the humans, humans who they had been getting on so well with! The monsters had been granted full citizenship, they were allowed to be here, they weren’t bothering anybody, so why would the humans attack? Yes, it was all an accident, that was all.

Sans had actually sidled up to the robot after their update, thanking him quietly. He may be a narcissistic bastard who was too handsy with Papyrus (and let’s face it, nobody who wanted to date Papyrus would ever meet Sans standards), but he cared about his audience, about all monster kind, to the point that he fudged the truth in order to comfort them. Mettaton had seen the bottles and come to the same conclusion as Ted – purposely lit incendiary devices, meant to harm and maybe, even, to kill.

The human pedaling onto the street didn’t seem too dangerous, at least. He came around the corner and slowly braked his bike, looking around with what could only be described as horror. Sans took the time to get a measure of the boy. He was in his teens, perhaps (it was hard to tell with humans sometimes), a bit older than Frisk at the most. Dirty blonde hair, brown eyes, freckles all over his cheeks and nose. No helmet, Sans was pretty sure that was illegal, and a prominent scar across his nose. He was dressed in jeans and a jacket, and tucked around his throat was Papyrus’s favorite scarf.

The boy pulled his bike to a halt beside the sidewalk and got off it, the kickstand popping out with a nudge of his toes. He was still looking at the burnt husks of buildings with shock and dismay on his face, and for a moment Sans was sure he saw tears in the child’s eyes. Then Papyrus bounded forward, and a fake smile snapped into place on the teens face.

“HUMAN! You have returned!” Papyrus reached the human before he could say anything and wrapped the thin – scrawny, really, he was short, skinny thing – teen into a hug.

The kid was obviously surprised at the sudden affection – his eyes widen and he went ramrod straight in the skeletons arms, looking completely blindsided. Sans smirked as he sauntered up, his notebook and camera disappearing with a slight flick of the wrist. There was no need to frighten a potential witness (or _suspect_ ) with a show of magic before even introducing himself.

“Uh – uh, h-hi, Mr. Papyrus,” the boy managed to stutter, shifting uncomfortably in the bony arms.

Papyrus released the boy, who immediately took a step back, putting some distance between them. He had an uneasy smile on his face, and he absently reached up to rub the red scarf between his fingers.

“I am pleased to see you are well!” Papyrus boomed, not seeming to notice the uncomfortable shifting of the teen. “I was worried when you disappeared last night!”

“Oh, sorry,” the kid wasn’t looking at them directly, instead focusing just to the left of Papyrus’s face. “The uh, the explosions kinda freaked me out, y’know?”

“Yes! It was quite frightening! Even the Great Papyrus,” the tall skeleton put a hand on his chest, the other on his hip, “was unsettled by the sound!”

“Hey, Paps, aren’t you gonna introduce me?” Sans moved to stand beside his brother, and his grin widened when the boy jumped.

Papyrus beamed down at him. “Of course, brother!” He turned to the human. “Er, hm. I never got your name last night.”

“Dag – Daniel. My name is Daniel Ricovich.”

“Nice to meet ya, kid.” Sans gave a lazy wink and held his hand out. Daniel hesitated a moment, then reached out to take it.

“WAIT!”

The kid jumped out of his skin at the shout, as Papyrus lunged forward. He took a couple steps back, snatching his arm back and holding both hands to his chest. The guard grabbed his brothers proffered hand and turned it so the palm was facing up. Attached to the bone by a bit of elastic wrapped around his palm was a mini whoopee cushion. With a triumphant ‘nyeh heh!’ Papyrus pulled it off and tucked it into the pocket of his jacket.

“There! Now you may safely commence your offer of friendship!” He took a step back. Daniel, who looked oddly shaken by the skeletons fast movements, waited for a beat before reaching out and taking Sans hand.

“Nice to meet ya, kid. I’m Sans. Sans the Skeleton.” He gave the humans hand a quick squeeze and, seeing how uncomfortable he was, retracted his hand and shoved them into his hoodie pockets. He let an easy-going smile cross his face and rocked back on his heels, evaluating the boy closely now that he had the chance.

It was definitely a kid - his face was still a bit round, and he was all skin and bones – no real muscles built up from the real world yet. He kept reaching up to fiddle with Papyrus’s scarf, rubbing it between his fingers as though using it to ground himself to the situation. He was tense, and there wasn’t outright fear in his eyes, but a certain wariness was in his gaze, one that Sans had seen plenty of times in his dealings with monsters before. This seemed different, though – more fragile, barely hiding the fear below.

“So, kid,” he looked around the street, doing his best to not stare at him and make the boy uncomfortable, “What were you doing here last night anyway?” Beside him Papyrus perked up and listened closely, curious.

Daniel rubbed the back of his neck and glanced at the ground, eyes trained on the toes of his sneakers. “My bro and I had a fight,” he muttered, “I was really mad, so I took off on my bike. We live just on the edge of the woods,” he motioned towards the way he had come, “and I figured I could just sit in the woods for a while and be mad.” Sans snorted but didn’t interrupt him.

“I didn’t realize I’d, uh, trespassed until I hit the road,” he motioned to the asphalt beneath their feet. “The log looked like a good place to sit, so I decided to hang out there for a while. It was so late; I didn’t think I’d run into anybody.” He glanced up at Papyrus with a weak smile, that grew a bit stronger when the skeleton beamed back.

When neither Sans or Papyrus said anything, Daniel shifted anxiously. “Am I, uh, in trouble?” He finally asked. “I really didn’t mean to come onto monster land, I didn’t want to bother anybody.”

The two monsters shared a look. “Nah, kid, you’re not in trouble.” He squinted. “Though I do gotta ask, what are you doing here?”

“Oh!” The kid absently noted that he was rubbing at the scarf again. He looked down at the skin. “I came back to uh, give Mr. Papyrus back his scarf.” Almost reluctantly, Daniel began tug it out of his jacket.

            Papyrus picked up on his hesitation and grinned, reaching out to rest a hand on the kid’s shoulder. “Do not worry, new friend! It is cold out, you may keep it for now!”

“Really?” Daniel looked up at him in surprise.

The guard nodded happily. “Yes, it is no trouble! You may return it later.”

Daniel nodded and tucked it back in his jacket.

“Anything else we can help you with, kid?” Sans tilted his head, looking at the kid with lazy eyes. “Not tryin’ to rush ya out or anything, but you’re kind of standing in my crime scene.”

The human shifted uncomfortably. “I um, wanted to see if there was anything I could do to, er, help?”

“Nothin’ here for you to do.” Sans cocked a brow at the boy – he was stuttering a bit while he spoke, seeming to be carefully picking his words. “Papyrus, why don’t you and Danny here go back to the city and see if he can help out at the castle? I’m certain Asgore or Toriel could find something for him to do.”

“What a brilliant idea, brother!” Papyrus grinned. “Come, Human Daniel! We will find a task fitting your greatness as my newest friend!” Without further ado, he seized Daniel’s wrist and dragged him towards the red sports car.

Sans watched with no small amount of amusement as the human was put into the passenger seat with the over-eager guard, who was quick to take off back down the road towards the city. Something about the kid was bothering him – he had been lying about his brother. It was a damn good lie, obviously Papyrus had fallen for it, but a lie none the less.

The kid had something to do with the attack last night, he was certain of it. He seemed regretful, at least – coming to try and make it up while obviously being scared of monsters was no small feat, and Sans had to respect it a bit. The human didn’t seem dangerous either, and if anything happened, he was sure Papyrus would be able to handle it.

Still, he would make sure to keep an eye socket on the kid. Just because the resets were done didn’t mean everything was over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! Suspicious Sans has arrived, along with new-best-friend Daniel (who has no idea what he's in for). Also, you know Papyrus really likes you when he lets you borrow his scarf!
> 
> Cheers!


	5. The Castle and the Reverend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> New friends for both Daniel and Henry...

 

** **

 

It wasn’t until they’d turned a corner and the remains of the Bun village were out of sight that it really hit Daniel. He had just accepted to go into the MONSTER CAPITAL, driven there by a monster he HARDLY KNEW, in order to help ROYALTY at their castle, assisting them in cleaning up a mess _he made_ , because he felt _guilty._

            A city of monsters.

            Full of nothing but monsters.

            No humans. None he knew, anyway.

            And nobody knew he was going there – his note to his brother simply said he was going for a ‘bike ride’ and the rest of the HHPL wouldn’t step foot in Ebott City without a flamethrower and some hand grenades. He was going to be all alone, surrounded by monsters. Tall, scary, most likely pissed-off-at-human’s monsters.

            Daniel was suddenly very happy that Papyrus had the top of his convertible down, despite the freezing weather. He was able to pass off his sudden shivering as just chills from the cold wind. Henry was going to kill him if – no, _when_ , Henry found out EVERYTHING – he found out.

Papyrus seemed completely oblivious to his oncoming panic attack. The tall skeleton, despite the flashy car and quick peel-out, was actually a very good driver. His eye sockets were locked on the road, and he was humming along with the radio, tapping his long gloved fingers against the steering wheel in time to the catchy beat. As they began to drive into Ebott City proper, he slowed the car and turned awkwardly in his seat to face Daniel.

            “Welcome, human friend,” he gestured grandly to the wide, busy park in front of them, “to Ebott City!”

            They had approached from the south. In the west loomed Mt. Ebott, keeping a protective vigil over the monsters even after they had escaped her grasp. To the east, down a long, straight stretch of road, were the large golden gates that were the ‘proper’ entrance to Ebott City. In front of them was a large park, in the center of which was a bubbling fountain. Monsters were enjoying the cool, clear morning. There were children climbing all around a playground, watched fondly by their parents. Couples were walking hand-in-hand beneath the trees and among the flowers, blissfully wrapped up in each other.

            Papyrus turned left, towards the mountain, and carefully navigated around the park. On the left side of the road were stores and restaurants – Grillby’s, the Spider Café, MTT Brand Mini-Mall, Bun & Son Inn and Shop, the list went on. Another turn and they were on the straight, well-traveled road that headed straight for a huge building made of purple stone.

The closer they got to what Daniel assumed was the castle, the grander the buildings got. A towering building made of glass and steel rose higher than any other, with a gold-plated ‘MTT STUDIOS’ sign hanging over grand double doors. Beside it was a tall, white building with only a smattering of windows, and the word ‘LAB’ on a small sign above the door. On the other side of the street was a modern-looking brick building with a large parking lot, which currently housed several police cars. Beside it was a large, white, building with a large courtyard and beautiful flowers planted all about. A sign beside the round-a-bout lot read ‘Golden Flower Hospital.’ There were a few ambulances parked out front, and as they drove past, an old Bun with his leg in a cast was wheeled out by his wife, escorted by a member of the royal guard.

            The castle – and it really _was_ a castle, practically pulled out of medieval times and plopped down at the base of the mountain – was made of an odd purple stone, most likely mined from under the mountain. Papyrus pulled through an open gate into a lush, green courtyard that was bursting with flowers and bushes. The road ended in a round-a-bout, and he pulled to park at the side of it. There were a few nice town cars parked in the same way, with a gold ‘EC’ etched on the front doors.

            The actual building was huge. It was at least four stories tall, made of the same gray-purple stone as the outer walls, with taller towers spearing through the fourth floor to add on a fifth or sixth. Daniel counted, and saw seven towers, each with different colored stained-glass hearts in the windows. There were other stained glass windows along the walls, portraying what he was sure were important pictures but that he, himself, didn’t understand. They were captivating anyway, and Daniel wondered if he could convince Papyrus to give him a tour and explain their significance to him.

            It was like a Disneyland attraction.

            “Here we are, human friend!” Papyrus killed the engine and leapt from the car without bothering to open the door. He stood, looking up at the building with a wide grin, hands on his hips. “Come, let us go see Asgore and Lady Asgore!” He turned to smile at Daniel, but it faltered when he saw the kid was still sitting in the car, tugging at the borrowed scarf around his neck. He was still trembling faintly, despite the sharp wind being gone. “Friend?”

            Papyrus wasn’t stupid – far from it, really. Beneath the goofy, cheerful exterior was a very observant skeleton. True, he’d never be as brilliant as his brother when it came to science and technology, but he excelled at reading others and understanding social cues. And Daniel – well, this kid wasn’t hard to read.

            “Do not worry, Friend Daniel!” The lanky guard kept his smile bright as he swung open the passenger side door, though he didn’t make a motion to pull the boy out. “There is no need to be nervous! I am certain Asgore and Lady Asgore will be grateful for your help today!” When Daniel still made no move to unbuckle his seatbelt, the skeleton leaned closer and lowered his voice, whispering conspiratorially. “I understand if you’re nervous about meeting royalty. The first time I met King Asgore, I was very nervous as well!”

            Daniel began to fiddle with the seatbelt, pulling the buckle apart only to fiddle with the metal clasp. “The king is – he’s _nice_ , right?” The teen tried to sound casual, and Papyrus beamed, straightening up and nodded so quickly his neck bones clacked together.

            “Oh yes! Asgore is the kindest monster there has ever been!” He praised his boss happily, and to his relief Daniel slid out of his seat and shut the passenger door. “Come, let’s go see him! I’m certain there is something we can do to help!”

            Papyrus rested a hand on the human’s shoulder and gently steered him towards the tall, wooden double-doors that led into the castle proper. They made it within ten feet when the doors slammed open, bouncing off the outer stone walls with a bang that had Daniel nearly jumping out of his skin.

            “PAPYRUS!”

            “UNCLE PAP!”

            Daniel barely managed to take a step to the side as twin striped blurs tackled Papyrus. The tall skeleton stumbled back a few steps, arms pin-wheeling, the two blurs clinging to his shoulders. Now that they had stopped moving, Daniel was able to see what was attacking the guard.

            “Uncle Papyrus, what took you _so long_?!” This came from the blue-and-purple striped blur. A human child – maybe ten, a bit older? – was hanging off of one shoulder, looking up at the skeleton through dark bangs. She wore a purple and blue sweater over jeans, and were gazing up at Papyrus with complete adoration.

            “Frisk was getting worried about you!” This came from the other child, who had scrambled to sit on Papyrus’s other shoulder, one arm wrapped around his skull to stay steady. He was a monster, evident by the white fluffy fur that covered his skin and the soft, round muzzle that took the place of a nose. There were little horns curving out of his forehead on the inside of long, fluffy goat ears. He was, well, if Daniel was a girl, he may have called the little goat-boy adorable. But he was a manly-man, so he settled for thinking of the monster as simply ‘fluffy.’

            “AH-HA! There is no cause to worry, dearest Frisk!” Papyrus bellowed, clutching them both and holding them steady with his gloved hands. “I was simply making sure Sans was not sleeping on the job!”

            “Was he?” The human asked innocently, a bright gleam in her eyes as she waited for the answer.

            “No!” Papyrus grinned at the children’s shocked faces. “He was working diligently for once!”

            “No way!”

            “You’re lying!”

            “Hey, Papyrus never lies!”

            “Well Sans never works!”

            Papyrus burst into loud ‘NYEH-HEH-HEH’ laughter as the two squabbled. “You are both right!” He chuckled, shifting the human so she was sitting on his shoulder like the monster kid. “What have you been up to in my absence?”

            “Playing with the baby buns!” The human chirped, giggling. “They’re _adorable_!”

            “Hmph.” The goat kid pouted, ears fluffing in irritation. “You’re only saying that ‘cause one of ‘em didn’t puke on you.”

            “He didn’t puke,” she chided, “he just spit up, and if you hadn’t been bouncing him right after feeding him his bottle, it wouldn’t have happened!”

            The two descended into squabbling and name calling, with Papyrus laughing heartily in-between them. Daniel felt a small smile tugging at his lips despite himself.

            “Hey, who’s that?” The human pointed at him, distracting the goat kid from calling her a super-mature booger-based name. His smile immediately became more strained as all three sets of eyes focused on him.

            “This is my newest friend!” Papyrus declared, beaming at him. “His name is Daniel!”

            “Hi Daniel!” The girl gave him a cheerful wave. “I’m Frisk! Frisk Dreemur!” She pointed to the other child. “This is my brother, Asriel!”

            Daniel slowly lifted his hand in a weak wave. “Uh, hi.” He offered them a small smile.

            “Come, human Daniel! Let us go find something to do!” Papyrus bent down and set the children down. Without preamble, they seized the teens hands and began dragging him into the castle, Papyrus happily following after.

 

* * *

            Henry woke around noon to a quiet house. He honestly hadn’t gotten enough sleep, but his stomach was twisting angrily, annoyed and grumbling about being empty. The young man shuffled to the kitchen, and found the note his little brother had left him. He snorted – hadn’t the kid had enough exercise the night before? Then again, he had seemed really shaken up by the unexpected explosions. He’d give Daniel the time he needed to calm down – he liked to be alone after a bad panic attack.

            A slap-dash sandwich and half a bag of chips later, Henry threw himself onto the couch and flipped on the TV. The MTT channel was marathoning the robot’s early works, so he switched over to ABC Family, which was, as usual, showing Harry Potter movies. Still tired, the man shoved a pillow under his head and watched as Harry tried to convince people he wasn’t the ‘Heir of Slytherin.’

            He drifted in and out of Chamber of Secrets, then Prisoner of Azkaban. Half-way through Goblet of Fire, someone pounded on his front door. Henry jerked upright and ran a hand through his bed-head hair. He swore under his breath and turned off the TV before shuffling towards the front door. If it was Franky, he swore he was going to shove the dumb redneck off the porch. They scattered for a _reason_. The last thing he needed was the county sheriff knocking down his front door and demanding to know what was going on.

            The man at the door was decidedly _not_ Franky. He was tall and thin, with a face that was equally so. His graying hair was covered by a black cowboy hat, and around the neck of his button-up shirt was a bolo tie with a turquoise stone set around a silver cross. He wore dark pants and polished black dress shoes, instead of the cowboy boots Henry had expected.

            “Hello,” the man’s voice was smooth, but had a distinct southern twang beneath it.

            “Hi.” Henry crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe, eyeing the man carefully. He was expecting the man to whip out a ‘Watchtower’ and ask him if he’d found Jesus.

            “I am looking for a man named Hunter.”

            Oh. Well. That wasn’t what he was expecting.

            “What do you want with him?” There we go, play it cool.

            The man took off his hat and held it to his chest, a sickly-sweet smile on his lips. “To help, young man, that’s all.” He leaned forward a bit. “I’ve heard you have quite the… _monster_ …problem around here.” His eyes flickered to the shadow of Mt. Ebott in the distance.

            “And?” Henry drawled, raising a brow.

            “And,” the man’s voice dropped lower, “I might just have the answer to your problem.” He held his hand out. “I’m the Reverend Jeremiah Cross, son,” he grinned at the flash of recognition in Henry’s eyes, “and I’m here to help you send those demons back to hell where they belong.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter, but I hope the map makes up for it! I had a lot of fun making it, especially the Compass Rose! It's not perfect or to scale, but I hope it'll make it easier to follow what's happening (and what's going to happen) in the story itself.
> 
> Thank you so much for your comments and kudos, they're super inspiring! If you like this chapter, please let me know!
> 
> Cheers!


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